


you and i here, we're gonna be everything

by atemzug



Category: CLC (Band), Pentagon (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Not K-Pop Idols, Confessions, F/M, Fluff, Non-Linear Narrative
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-18 19:41:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,544
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29374011
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atemzug/pseuds/atemzug
Summary: Falling isn't so bad once you know someone's there to catch you.
Relationships: Kang Hyunggu | Kino/Jang Yeeun
Comments: 2
Kudos: 2





	you and i here, we're gonna be everything

**Author's Note:**

> in the uni i go to, there's an annual fair during the week of valentine's day. obviously this year there's no fair, so here is fic instead. happy valentine's day! ♡
> 
> the title is a line from ['nobody else'](https://soundcloud.com/knnovation/nobodyelse-demo?ref=clipboard&p=a&c=0) by [hongseok airy whisper voice] knnovation which i copy pasted on papago. (i have been obsessed with this song since the day it was released.. please check kino's solo music out!!)
> 
> edited this as best as i could, but i'm sure there are things i missed so apologies in advance for that!

_"One, two, three, I'm diving in the deep and,_ _  
__holding my breath,_ _  
_ _will you take my hand?"_   
_—L-l-love, He is We_

  
  
  
  
  


"Yeeun-ah," Hyunggu says, so softly his voice is almost drowned out by the noise all around them - the band playing live on the stage below, people screaming and shouting on the rides, all the conversations going on everywhere on the fairgrounds. 

"Hm?" she asks, turning to face him. She's struck by the intensity of his gaze, not in a way that's strong and scary but something more fond yet still overwhelming. It shocks her into speechlessness.

"I like you."

Hyunggu's words hang heavily in the air, suspended feet above the ground just like the ferris wheel cart they're riding. It feels like gravity has suddenly stopped working, and Yeeun is floating slowly in space, unaware of time-- unaware of anything. In that moment, it's just them, in a small bubble, where no sound and no soul can penetrate.

He waits for her answer, smiling softly as though he's assured that Yeeun would say she likes him back. And maybe he really is. Maybe there's enough reason for him to be. Maybe Yeeun has just been so transparent, an open book even when she tried her hardest to close the pages. 

She wonders if he can see it right now, all the notes and scribbles of his name in different styles, all the feelings Yeeun wrote down but striked through as soon as ink touched paper. 

"Say something?" Hyunggu says, so gently that Yeeun can barely make out the words. 

She's at a loss for words, tongue tied as she looks back at him. It's so hard to think at the moment, to form coherent thoughts. Her mind has gone totally blank. All that's there is Hyunggu's face, his warm hand over hers. All that's present is the steady _thump thump thump_ of heart, going faster and faster like it wants out. She feels so raw under his gaze, like he could see all the messy thoughts flying around in her head that now just feels so light and empty. She struggles to find the right thing to say back, but she fears that if she opens her mouth only her heart will come out. 

Maybe it's the height that's making her dizzy. Or maybe it's the fact that Kang Hyunggu likes her back.

She decides to just not think.

  
  
  
  
  


When Kang Hyunggu shows up outside Yeeun's dorm first thing in the morning, Yeeun almost jumps out of her skin. 

"What are you doing here?" she asks, looking from her left to her right to make sure no one's around. Boys aren't allowed in the girls' wing of the hall, and Yeeun doesn't want to get in trouble for that. 

"Relax," Hyunggu tells her. "I'm friends with the Resident Assistants, remember?"

"They don't make the rules, you know."

Hyunggu chuckles. "Come with me to the fair tonight," he says, without missing a beat.

The same beat it takes Yeeun before she even realizes what he’s asking. She blinks at him a couple times. _The fair? On this day?_

"I mean--" he clears his throat. “Do you want to go to the fair with me tonight?"

"I didn't get a ticket for this day," is the only thing Yeeun can think of saying.

"I already got you one."

"You did? Why?"

Hyunggu tilts his head. "Well, because I was gonna ask you to come."

Yeeun has to fight the urge to pinch herself. She's almost convinced she's still asleep, dreaming of scenarios that are never going to happen. Why would Hyunggu show up at her doorstep on Valentine's Day, asking her out? Or is he even asking her out? For all she knows, he might just be asking her to tag along, feeling obliged since they're in the same friend group, and he's probably already invited everyone else. 

But she actually pinches herself on the arm, and Hyunggu's still standing in front of her, looking at her with an almost expectant expression. It's so quiet that Yeeun's scared Hyunggu can hear her swallow hard-- or worse, her steadily quickening heartbeat. She absently draws a hand to her chest, over her heart.

Hyunggu's eyes follow the movement, but immediately shifts his gaze upwards. "So, uh," he stutters, ears reddening. "I'll see you later then?"

Yeeun is positive her face is just as red as Hyunggu's ears. She's suddenly conscious that she's only wearing pajamas, although thankfully she's wearing the cute ones that her roommate got her for Christmas. 

"Uh," she says in a small voice. "Sure."

"Great!" Hyunggu is still avoiding her eyes, but he's smiling widely. "See you, then," he says, finally looking at her briefly to say goodby. 

He heads off, leaving Yeeun wondering, _What just happened?_

  
  
  
  
  


Yeeun finds Hyunggu waiting for her at the lobby of their dormitories. It's half eight, and the sky outside is already dark. She wishes it were as dark inside the building, so she doesn't have to look at all the Valentine's inspired decorations - hearts of different colors and sizes, and someone even thought it was a good idea to leave last Christmas' mistletoe hanging in right in the middle of the lobby - and Hyunggu won't have to see how red her face has become just by seeing him in a casual white shirt and faded jeans.

The way he looks at her makes her feel a little conscious. Did she dress up too much, or is she actually dressed down? She smooths down her dress - a frail attempt at calming down her nerves. He smiles at her like she lights up the night, and her palms are all sweaty again.

“You look nice,” he says.

“Thanks,” she murmurs, clearing her throat. “You, too.”

Between her own apprehension and the way Hyunggu looks at her as though she’s the only person he sees, Yeeun totally forgot they’re not alone. She almost jumps out her own skin when Yein, her roommate, speaks for the first time since they left their room. 

“You’re supposed to say that, too,” Yein tells her boyfriend, Minho, who was waiting with Hyunggu at the lobby. He’s so pretty, he’s impossible to miss, but Yeeun barely even noticed him. 

“You already know that,” Minho tells Yein as he takes her hand in his. 

“Yeah, but it’d still be nice to hear from time to time,” Yein replies. The two of them start walking. Minho whispers something in her ear that Yeeun doesn’t catch.

“Shall we go, too?” Hyunggu asks, and for a second Yeeun thought he was going to reach for her hand, too, but he places both hands in his pockets instead.

Yeeun turns away, a little embarrassed. “Yeah, sure.”

“Sorry for the last minute notice,” Hyunggu says while they’re walking. “I wasn’t sure I was gonna get tickets.”

“It’s alright,” Yeeun assures him. She feels more composed now that they’re outside and the space is bigger, there’s more room to breathe. She even manages a smile. “I didn’t have plans today, anyway.”

“Really?”

“Mhm.”

“That’s good,” he says, glancing sideways at her. “Doesn’t it seem like it’s--” he looks away when she looks at him, shaking his head “--nothing, nevermind.”

“What is it?” she asks. 

Hyunggu sighs. “Just--” he laughs “--this can’t be entirely coincidental, can it?”

Yeeun, for all her being a nervous wreck for the better part of the day, can't help the smile that makes its way onto her face. 

It does seem a little like fate.

  
  
  
  
  


It does seem a little like fate, the way everything goes so smoothly.

Usually, there's a long line before getting into the fair grounds, like the previous nights before. Tonight, the four of them get in without much waiting, and a band both Yeeun and Hyunggu like are playing a set. They even find a good spot, not too far the stage that they can still see who's playing, but not too near that their eardrums hurt from the speaker system. 

When the band finishes their set, Minho and Yein leave to go around the booths. Hyunggu and Yeeun decide to keep their place for the next band, which seems a lot more popular than the previous, judging by the crowd that suddenly came to life as soon as their name was announced, even though they're both home-grown bands from the university. But the band starts to play, and Yeeun realizes why they're a crowd favorite. 

She's so engrossed in the performance that she doesn't notice when a large group heads their direction, going past them in an unruly manner. She only notices when Hyunggu suddenly wraps an arm around her shoulder and pulls her close to him, shielding her from bodies squeezing their way into the thickening crowd as they're both being pushed forward and nearer to the stage.

"You alright?" Hyunggu asks when the people around them have stilled for a moment.

Yeeun nods, her face practically buried in Hyunggu's chest, his arms _almost_ wrapping her in an embrace. She can feel heat coming from his body, making her warm-- from the inside and out.

"Wanna get out?" he asks, so close to her ear, making her shiver. 

"Yeah," she shouts so he can hear her over the loud noise. "Let's go find Yein and Minho."

Hyunggu leads her out of the crowd, arms still wrapped around her protectively. It takes a while to make their way past so many people, but after twisting and turning and zigzagging their way out, they stop right in front of the Ferris Wheel, where a surprisingly short line has gathered.

"Wanna just ride this?" Hyunggu asks, pointing up at the big wheel that wasn't even there a week ago. "We can watch them from up there."

Yeeun looks up at the ride. She's been to the fair a couple of times before, but she hasn't once ridden any of the rides temporarily set up. For one, she hates rides. Two: "Is it even safe?" she wonders out loud.

Hyunggu laughs. She doesn't hear, but she feels his chest vibrating. Only then does she realize he still has an arm around her, even when they're already out in the open space and there's plenty of room for them to move. 

"I'm pretty sure it is," he says. "I guess we'll find out."

Yeeun doubts it is, but she lets him lead her to the booth nonetheless. He pays for their tickets before she could even offer, then they stand in line.

Hyunggu still doesn't let go. 

  
  
  
  
  


_What just happened?_

"He just asked you out," is what Yeeun's roommate, Yein, first says after Yeeun told her about what happened that morning.

"No," Yeeun says, feeling her face burn.

Yein laughs as she rummages through her closet, looking for something to wear. She and her boyfriend are going to the fair tonight, too, of course. "That's basically what he did, though, isn't it?" she replies.

"I don't think so." 

"Of course he did," Yein insists. "Look at it this way: if Minho did something like that to me, you'd also say he asked me out, right?"

"You guys are already going out," Yeeun points out.

"You get what I mean." 

Yeeun lets out a sigh, slumping back onto her bed, sinking into the mattress that still smells faintly of detergent. She does, in fact, get what Yein means, and she would be lying if she said there's not a single fiber in her being that's convinced Kang Hyunggu just asked her out some hours ago. But she’d also be lying if she said there’s an even bigger part of her that’s scared to believe in something she’s only ever imagined, scared to get her hopes up only to be let down in the end. 

She's liked Hyunggu for months now - maybe even longer, and it just took her a while to realize. They're friends, after all. Yeeun likes her friends; she likes spending time with them and talking to them. With Hyunggu, though, she finds that she wants something more than just a few shared meals and even fewer moments alone. She wants longer stares, contact, connection. She wants--

"You're blushing!" Yein exclaims, snapping her out of her reverie. "You're blushing 'cause you're realizing he asked you out! On a date!"

"Yein, it's not a date," Yeeun replies. "We're going with you and Minho, how is that a dat?"

"A double date, duh." Yein rolls her eyes. "And anyway, it's not like Minho and I specifically made plans to go with you two. We're just heading there together out of convenience. I'm sure you guys would want to split up as soon as we get there, too."

"That's so not true," Yeeun insists. At this point she's not sure anymore whether she's trying to convince Yein or herself. 

"Sure," Yein concedes, sighing. "But since you like him, just think about it. Today _can be_ a good day to tell him."

"So easy for you to say," Yeeun mumbles. 

It's so easy for people when they're not the ones spiraling down, not the ones afraid of crashing and burning, not the ones gravity is pulling so hard at. 

It's so easy for people when they're not the ones falling in love.

  
  
  
  
  


She decides to just not think.

Yeeun dives in head first, succumbing to gravity's pull. It’s been a long time coming: the slow, steady descent downwards; the fall. She braces herself for the impact, the crashing and burning, but it doesn't come. 

It doesn't come because Hyunggu catches her, sliding arms around her waist, pulling her into the safety of his arms. His warmth envelopes her, surrounding her in overwhelming sunlight. Hyunggu's lips are soft, tasting faintly of mango and so much like sunshine. It's a different kind of burn from the one she expected. This feels good, perfect amounts of heat and flame to make her feel alive. It's every bit as exhilarating as falling, every bit as stomach-churning. But it's also so different when there's no fear of drowning, when she knows she'll be safe at the landing. 

It feels like an eternity has passed before their lips finally part, and only because the Wheel has started turning again. 

Hyunggu holds Yeeun in place, keeping her steady, as the Wheel brings them back down.

Yeeun bites her lip, thinking this could still be a dream. Hyunggu could still say he didn't mean it, kissing her back; he could still say he was just lost in the moment and just went with it.

But what Hyunggu says is: " _God._ I think I've liked you since we became friends." His breathing is heavy, as though he's nervous, afraid of the exact same things Yeeun is afraid of.

For as long as she's known him, he's never once shown interest in anyone. That was enough for Yeeun to think he'd never be interested in her, too. But she was wrong, she now knows, and she feels lightheaded at the thought that she somehow won his affection.

It feels like she's both floating and falling at the same time. But it's alright, now that she knows she's in this space with him.

She takes his hand in hers, and together they wait for their feet to touch the ground.

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading!
> 
> [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.qa/crashingfalling)


End file.
